


Adventures in LARPing

by PeaceLilies



Category: Motorcity
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-11-01
Updated: 2012-11-01
Packaged: 2017-11-17 13:41:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,771
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/552163
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PeaceLilies/pseuds/PeaceLilies
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Mike and Chuck's relationship takes some interesting turns thanks to Chuck's interest in LARPing</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Part 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [clementine (Clementine)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Clementine/gifts).



Chuck knew he was roughly the color of a cooked lobster and that the noises he wanted to make in protest to what he was reading would be totally unsightly and elicit questions he did not want to answer.

He’d been browsing the Motorcity LARP forum, looking for the new schedule of dates for the annual summer festival, when he’d stumbled upon the “Creative Corner” of the site. There were links for each group of LARPers and within the links, any members of that group who had artwork, stories, poems, or any other creation of theirs that had been posted. Chuck clicked through, curious. He marveled at some of the stunning artwork, vaguely wondering to himself if maybe he should submit some of his own designs. He browsed some of the stories and found many of them engaging.

Out of curiosity, he’d clicked on his own group’s link. There was a list of all the members, with only Ruby and Thurman having any work uploaded. There was a category for art/literature submitted by other members about his group, so Chuck looked at that first, impressed at the depictions of Sir Mike, The Smiling Dragon. Even a few of Lord Vanquisher were pretty good and it made Chuck a little self-conscious, but a tad bit flattered, too.

He moved from the art to the stories, curious as to what had been written about him and his little group of friends. Some of the stuff was pretty cool, good ideas for a weekend adventure, and then he’d found the smut. He was mortified (and a little turned on) at the contents of quite a few stories. What Lord Vanquisher and his loyal vassal The Smiling Dragon were getting up to in the down time they had when not saving the kingdom was just ridiculous.

Underneath his horror, Chuck was a little jealous of his fictional self, who was getting more action than Chuck had ever had, EVER. He sat back in his seat, shifting uncomfortably, and debating whether or not he should tell Mike. Was that cool? Did you tell your best friend that people in the LARPing community were convinced that their fictional selves were banging each other? What did that say about him and Mike? Not that it was a bad thing, because it wasn’t, but…did he feel that way towards Mike and not realize it?

Chuck could feel himself starting to panic. He put his hands over his face and tried to calm down. Yes, he and Mike were close. They were best friends. They were affectionate. They were always hanging all over each other and joking around and laughing. That’s what you did with your best friend. Right? Right…

He bit at his thumbnail. He didn’t have a problem with people thinking he liked Mike because he kind of did and that was okay. Mike was handsome and funny and kind. He was the least judgmental person on the planet and he always had Chuck’s back. Even when they didn’t see eye to eye, there was never any real animosity. Chuck was pretty sure, if he had a choice in the matter, that he’d be perfectly happy dating Mike. But this was reality, the real world. They were best friends. Nothing more.

He brushed his hair aside and huffed a breath. Okay. Mike had a right to know. The stuff that was written was kind of funny, in its own way, even a little cute. They could use some of the ideas even, see how people reacted, since, well, Lord Vanquisher and the Smiling Dragon were very much in love apparently. He might as well see what Mike thought before proceeding and he pulled up Mike’s vid screen. 

“Hey Chuckles, what’s up?” the little icon of Mike asked cheerfully.

“Uh…are you alone?” he asked nervously.

“Yeah, why? Everything okay?”

“Uh, yeah, in a manner of speaking.”

“Chuck, buddy, what’s going on?”

“I need you to read something and promise not to freak out.”

Mike laughed. “Relax, bro. I’m cool. Whatcha’ got for me?”

Chuck duplicated the screen in front of him and pressed it into Mike’s screen, sending it to him. The brunet’s icon changed and the real Mike popped up on the screen. He was sitting against Mutt, covered in grease, his jacket abandoned somewhere away from the mess. He was reading what Chuck had sent, brows furrowed.

“Who wrote this?” he asked.

“No idea. I found it by accident.”

Mike smiled and looked at the vid screen. “Right, Chuckles…by accident,” he said, waggling his eyebrows and Chuck was pretty sure the room had gotten ten degrees warmer and his head was going to explode.

“Mikey! Why would you even say that?!”

Mike just laughed. “Relax, dude! I’m just teasing! Listen, let people think what they want. It doesn’t matter. I think it’s actually kind of flattering. We’d totally make a cute couple.”

Chuck swallowed. He really, really didn’t like when Mike did that.

“Don’t let it bother you,” Mike added.

“I know…I know.” Chuck blew his bangs out of his eyes and sighed. “So what would you say to doing this?”

“What d’ya mean?”

“Like…making Lord Vanquisher and The Smiling Dragon an item?”

Mike thought for a few moments and then smiled.

“Ah, what the hell! Why not! I’m sure people would get a kick out of it.”

Chuck smiled hesitantly and Mike watched him fondly.

“No worries, pal. It’s all fun and games. I’m gonna finish tuning up Mutt and then how about we head to Antonio’s and pick up some pizzas?” 

The programmer nodded, relaxing a bit. “Yeah, I’ll see you in a few.”

***

A couple of days passed and nothing had changed, save that Chuck was over-thinking everything. He couldn’t stop thinking about those stories. If Mike noticed anything, he didn’t say or make any sign that he knew.

The weekend finally arrived and with it the Summer Festival. It was a huge LARPing convention with teams from all over Motorcity joining in to make it the largest LARPing event in Michigan (as far as they knew anyway).

The field had been set up to look like a village with booths for games and food, shops for buying armor, weapons, and other items, even a few faux houses. There was one section that had been designated for the contests because there could not be a Summer Festival without contests. The main events were archery, jousting and dueling. It was all pretty impressive.

Lord Vanquisher, as King of Raymanthia (for the 50th consecutive weekend), was required to preside over the contests and Sir Mike the Smiling Dragon signed himself up for the dueling contest as a representative for his King.

“This is pretty cool,” Mike whispered out of character as they walked around. Chuck was practically bouncing as he walked, looking around with (what Mike assumed were) big eyes, like a kid in a candy store.

It was exciting and distracting; everyone was having such a good time acting in character that Chuck forgot about analyzing every touch or every word from Mike. The two parted as Chuck was whisked away to preside over the contests and reward the victors.

Mike watched, amused, as Chuck took on the Lord Vanquisher persona. He stood taller, prouder, acting as very much the leader. Smiling Dragon bowed his head, wishing his King farewell and that he would see him on the contest grounds.

Ace the Strong won the jousting contest, receiving a Level 30 lance with a +10 to. Ruby the Dark Slayer placed second in archery, missing the top spot by one arrow. The title went to Marissa the Hawk-Eyed, who received a Level 32 bow and a quiver of arrows.

Of all the contests, dueling had to be the most fun to watch thanks to the Smiling Dragon – Mike was so obviously into it, and he was good, too. Word had spread quickly (all because of Ruby) that the Smiling Dragon, Lord Vanquisher’s favored knight, was a skilled fighter, and indeed he was. A rather large crowd had gathered around to watch, cheering him on. Chuck was practically glowing with pride when Mike won, the obvious victor from the start.

While normally Mike allowed his opponents to win from time to time (since he considered his military training an unfair advantage) the contest was too good to pass up. He liked the challenge and everyone was so good-natured about the whole thing.

“My victory is for my King!” the Smiling Dragon proclaimed on bended knee before Lord Vanquisher.

“Stand, great knight, and receive your well-earned rewards,” the King of Raymanthia proclaimed, standing from his throne.

“For your unparalleled skill in swordsmanship, I gift thee this sword of great power, forged in the fires of the Great Mountain by the masterful hands of dwarves. Use it well,” he said, stepping down from the podium and placing the sword (which had taken Thurman almost four hours to make) carefully in the knight’s capable hands. He was taller than Mike and was looking down at him kindly.

“I have one more gift to bestow, for your bravery and dedication to the kingdom and her King.”

Mike looked back at Chuck, slightly confused, but just going with it. “My liege…?” he asked.

The blond placed both hands on the sides of Mike’s face, tilting his head up slightly, holding him gently in place. He leaned down the two inches that separated them and placed a kiss on the Smiling Dragon’s lips. There was an audible gasp from the crowd.

Chuck pulled back, heart pounding, struggling to keep himself under control and in character. Mike blinked up at him, a little shocked, but he was good at rolling with the punches. He grasped both of Lord Vanquisher’s hands.

Chuck cleared his throat and spoke. “There is no one I would rather give my heart to, my most noble and great knight. You have protected and fought for Raymanthia — and for me – with unfailing loyalty. I have no wish to hide the truth. You are unparalleled in all things.”

“My Lord Vanquisher, you honor me with this gift. I accept it this most precious of rewards and will protect and defend it for as long as I live,” the knight declared. He flashed his signature smile, taking the hands from his face and holding them carefully in his own. He leaned up on his toes a bit to kiss Chuck again. The crowd erupted in applause.

There was much congratulating and celebrating. Chuck overheard Ruby exclaiming excitedly to Thurman that she’d told him so and that she’d known it all along.

By the time the festival was done and everyone started heading home, a tension had settled over Mike and Chuck. The two got into Mutt and sat in silence. Mike had his hands on the wheel, key in the ignition, but not turned.

“Soooo…” he said into the awkward silence of the car. Chuck looked like he wanted to melt into the seat, his face beet red. He gulped, throat dry, heart going like a jackhammer. He was pretty sure he was going to faint.

“I’m sorry, Mikey, I just…I guess I kind of got a little carried away? You said it was okay and it seemed like the perfect opportunity so I took it and…and I’ve been thinking about the fanfiction thing a lot and just – you’re my best friend but I think I might like you more than that? And I just…I don’t knowwww.”

Chuck put his head in his hands, feeling queasy. There was a stretch of silence that seemed to drag on forever, and then Mike chuckled.

“Uh, yeah, I think I liked that kiss from more than just an in-character perspective,” the brunet said, hands sliding off the wheel. Chuck’s face snapped up as he looked at Mike. Mike turned to look at him, smiling.

“You…did?” The knot in Chuck’s stomach changed from one of anxiety to one of cautious optimism.

Mike nodded. He leaned over, moving Chuck’s fringe out of the way, that stupid, gorgeous smile plastered to his ridiculously handsome face. He pressed his lips carefully to Chuck’s, moving them slowly, cautiously testing. He pulled back and the blond was pretty sure his brain was going to explode.

Chuck swallowed.

“We can do this,” Mike said.

“D-do what?” Chuck stammered, heart doing double time.

“This — whatever this is going to be,” he replied, gesturing to the two of them. He ran the back of his hand in a caress across a freckled cheek. His smile was calm, affectionate. He kissed Chuck on the cheek, turned back to the steering wheel and started Mutt up.

Chuck leaned back in his seat, shoulders hunched, bottom lip between his teeth, suppressing the happy scream bubbling up in his chest. It came out as a happy, slightly squeaky sigh. He was grinning from ear to ear.

“Pizza, again?” Mike asked, switching gears and giving Chuck a sidelong glance.

“Yeah, pizza’s good,” was the reply.

Mike stared at his pizza as all his nerves came rushing at him. Chuck had gone to the bathroom, leaving the brunet alone with his thoughts. He let out a breath, trying to figure out what had just happened.

Chuck had kissed him – well, Lord Vanquisher had, but it was Chuck, who was pretending, but he wasn’t really pretending? Mike shook his head, trying to get his thoughts straight. He was happy. Immensely happy in fact, but kind of also freaked out because that had been a huge crowd of people and HOLY SHIT CHUCK LIKED HIM LIKED HIM!!

He bit back an excited cheer that was building up. He was good at keeping himself under control; he didn’t really do excited. He just kind of followed the situation at hand. It often seemed like he was pretty self-assured, but deep down, not as much as one would think. Chuck was obviously nervous and he really only stayed calm when Mike was, so he squashed his anxiety down and just…let things go as they would.

He was still in a bit of a daze. This was really happening. He didn’t notice when Chuck came back, until the blond was waving a hand in his face.

Mike blinked and smiled. “Sorry, Chuckles, kind of got a little lost there,” he said.

Chuck smiled back, though it faded pretty quickly.

“You alright, buddy?” Mike asked.

“Yeah, I was just thinking, Mikey…”

Mike tilted his head, listening. Chuck swallowed, nervous. The lead Burner rested a hand over his (which was trembling slightly) and squeezed.

“What’s up, Chuck?”

“You, uh, don’t have to do this,” he said, pulling his hand out from under Mike’s and into his lap.

“Do what?”

“This. Whatever this thing is. I mean…I know you’re just being a good friend and stuff, but don’t feel pressured to like, you know, take me on dates and stuff if you don’t have any feelings for me because then I would feel so bad and —-“

Mike held up a hand and Chuck stopped mid-sentence. He watched Chuck with a fond expression on his face and then looked at his hands. “I, uh, do have feelings for you, you know and I’m…dude, I am way nervous. I mean, you’re my best friend and having feelings for your best friend can be hard sometimes. I was really surprised and kind of glad you did what you did today because honestly, I don’t think I would have ever made a move.”

He looked up, his mouth quirked a bit. Chuck was looking back at him, holding his hair out of his eyes.

“Really…?”

Mike nodded and chuckled a little. “You really have to relax, though. I mean…you were fine and then you came back and were freaking out. I’m telling you right now. I like you, a lot. Whatever happens, happens. Fair deal?”

Chuck laughed a little self-consciously and smiled. “Yeah, it’s a deal.”

They got back to the garage a little late; laughing, arms slung around each other.

“I’m telling you though, you were pretty amazing today,” Mike whispered as they started down the hallway to their rooms.

“Nah, not really. I mean, I just kind of sat there and pretended I knew what was going on. You kicked some major ass though. Everyone was really impressed,” Chuck replied.

Mike laughed. “I had a good time. LARPing is a lot of fun.”

“I told youuuu.” Chuck jabbed Mike playfully in the ribs and the brunet pretended to buckle over.

“Hey! Be nice.”

The blond laughed.

They looked at each other, smiling, right before the nerves set in again. Chuck chortled nervously and Mike noted the way his face turned red and how it spread down his neck and whoa, hey, easy there buddy, don’t get carried away, this is brand new territory.

“So, uh, good night…?” Chuck squeaked, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Night, Chuckles,” Mike said, giving him a calming smile, even though his stomach was doing somersaults. He stepped a little closer. They both did this awkward shuffle thing and their noses bumped together when they kissed, but it was nice.

“See you in the morning, my liege,” Mike said, as he opened the door to his room and bowed. Chuck grinned and giggled.

“Shut up, Mikey,” he said, still smiling as he closed his door to Mike’s own hushed laughter.

Mike pressed himself to the back of his door, bit his lip, ran his hands over his face and grinned until his face hurt.

Across the hall, Chuck flopped face-first onto his bed, squished his pillow close and scrunched himself into a ball of happiness.


	2. Part 2

Neither Chuck nor Mike were very focused on labeling what was going on between them as weeks passed. It was like nothing had really changed, except they held hands and kissed and snuggled. They were too new to the whole thing to even think about what to call themselves.

They were just Mikey and Chuckles. 

Chuck knew that Mike was pretty experienced when it came to relationships. He knew about his history in Deluxe, but that didn’t really matter. Whoever Mike had been with in the past wasn’t of any consequence, it was just the fact that he had and Chuck hadn’t.

Mike knew that would be the biggest hurdle. So he came up with a brilliant idea.

Utilize LARPing as a way to encourage Chuck. Mike saw the confidence the game gave him, all he had to do was take some of that and move it into real-life. Deep down, Mike knew that there was a part of Chuck that was Lord Vanquisher.

During the weekends, when there was time, Mike would watch Chuck shine. He was getting better at using his lance and his kingly presence was both inspiring and impressive. Everyone knew who Lord Vanquisher was; that he was a great warrior, a gentle and kind ruler. That he was in love with the Smiling Dragon.

Word of the somewhat whirlwind romance of the king and his knight spread pretty quickly. At first they didn’t really do much save hold hands, but then Mike had “died” and that had called for a pretty big emotional response from Chuck. Holding Mike’s body and sobbing how he would be avenged. It was impressive.

The next weekend, when the Smiling Dragon returned to The Realm after retrieving a mystical orb from the Dragon at the Edge (which was just this old parking garage right outside of “Raymanthia”), Lord Vanquisher had greeted his return with quite the kiss that had left Mike a little breathless and Chuck trying to hide his blush.

“I’ve missed you,” Lord Vanquisher said (Chuck was still red but he was holding it together pretty well), as he rubbed his nose against the Smiling Dragon’s.

“I’ve missed you more,” was the reply. The knight smiled and his King returned it.

Later, in Mutt, Mike debated what he was going to say to broach the subject of that kiss while Chuck talked to Thurman about getting together to make some new weapons. The blond got into the car, waving to his friend, and strapped in. He turned to Mike and smiled shyly, brushing his hair out of his face.

“Hey.”

Mike smiled back and laughed a little; Chuck was just too cute sometimes. “Hey,” he replied.

“Listen Mikey, I’m sorry about that kiss before, I got kind of, um, carried away,” Chuck mumbled, fidgeting a little.

The lead Burner shook his head. “Dude, don’t apologize, seriously. That was, a, uh, really, really good kiss.”

Chuck moved his hair out of his face again. “R-really?” 

Mike nodded. “Listen, Chuckles, it’s okay to get “carried away” sometimes. I like kissing you, a lot, so, uh, don’t feel like you need to back off or anything. Just…whatever you feel like doing, do it,” he said, feeling himself get a little red.

“Uh, are you serious?”

“Of course I’m serious! We are, uh, dating, I think…?”

“Are we?”

“Yeah…yeah, totally. I mean…we go out and stuff, like dates, and we make-out and hold hands and yeah, definitely dating.” 

There was an awkward silence. Chuck started to chuckle a little and Mike started too and then they both burst out laughing.

“My lord Chuck, would you do me the great honor of being my boyfriend?” Mike asked, through his laughter, taking one of Chuck’s hands across the front seat.

“Of course, my dearest Smiling Dragon. I would very much like to give you that honor.”

They laughed some more, holding hands, before finally calming down.

Chuck unbuckled his belt, slipping his hand from Mike’s. Freed from the straps he leaned over, taking Mike’s face in his hands and kissing him in that breathtaking way of his. When he pulled back he was red but smiling.

“Yeah…that was good,” Mike said.

Chuck just sighed, a smile on his face.

Mike licked his lips and rubbed his hands up and down Chuck’s arms.

“You know, don’t be afraid to be a little Lord Vanquisher-y. I can take it.”

Chuck nodded, smiling a little shyly.

“Let’s go somewhere a little more secluded, maybe?” Mike suggested.

“Okay,” Chuck said and sat back in his seat, shoulders scrunched up, the way he sat when he was happy.

Mike chuckled and started up Mutt. He drove a little ways out, around one of the tracks they used to test out their new weaponry. It was quiet over there and they wouldn’t be bothered.

They’d come out this way a few times, testing the waters in terms of making-out, for the programmer anyway. Chuck had made a lot of progress, a bit more comfortable in his own skin, for the most part.

Chuck sat in his lap after Mike moved the seat back a bit; making it easier for their legs to fit and so Chuck wouldn’t hurt his back from being pressed up against the steering wheel.

He liked the way Chuck’s hands smoothed into his hair, fingers gripping his scalp, tilting his head back just a little. He bumped their noses together; the blond smiled, and closed his eyes before pressing his lips to Mike’s.

He liked the way Chuck looked when he closed his eyes, like he was really relaxing and enjoying it. Chuck liked kissing slow. He was so detail orientated, taking in every feeling and taste. Mike wouldn’t rush him. They’d go his pace. It was enough that the blond drove with him.

Mike kept his hands on Chuck’s lower back, moving in gentle motions, calming. He’d enjoy everything Chuck had to offer. This was too special to mess up. He liked the comfortable weight of Chuck sitting on his lap, his warmth, the way he smelt and tasted.

“Mikey,” Chuck breathed, pulling back. His lips were a little swollen and he smiled a little hesitantly.

“Chuckles?” he breathed back, moving the blond curtain out of Chuck’s face. Chuck giggled, leaning over to the glove box and pulling out a box of bobby pins. Mike laughed, holding them as Chuck pulled a few out to hold his hair out of his face.

“Okay, better, uh,” Chuck said, putting the box back and then turning back to Mike. He looked a little flustered and Mike chuckled, rubbing his sides.

“Relax, babe.”

“I know, I know. I’m calm, I just…” he made a huffing noise and Mike chortled a little. He watched Chuck with a smile on his face, still doing the soothing hands thing.

“Okay, alright, I’m gonna do this,” the blond murmured and started pulling off his shirt.

“Chuck…?”

Chuck sat there, hands covering his face after he’d tossed his shirt onto the passenger seat.

“Okayokayokay, I did it,” he said, breathing heavily. Mike rested his hands over Chuck’s exposed hips, massaging them. He was surprised and more than a little impressed. The programmer was the most self-conscious person he knew.

“You alright there?” he asked. Chuck nodded.

“I’m uh, channeling Lord Vanquisher,” he mumbled. 

“Okay, uh, that’s great! Hey, don’t hide, no worries,” Mike said, kissing and gently tugging at Chuck’s hands until they rested at his sides. Chuck was blushing, his face, neck and top of his chest red. Mike wiggled out of his jacket and shirt, tossing them with Chuck’s.

“There we go. Now we’re even,” he said, smiling. Chuck gulped, wringing his hands and Mike looked on concerned, rubbing at his upper arms. The blond crossed his hands over his chest, shrinking into himself a little.

“Talk to me, Chuckles,” Mike said gently.

Chuck wiggled a little uncomfortably and looked at the roof of Mutt. “I’m just a little nervous and freaking out because I’m really self-conscious and I don’t like how I look and then look at you,” he rambled, waving his hands at Mike before crossing them again. “You’re really, really good looking and I’m trying to do what you said, be a little assertive and I just…I failed miserably.” 

Mike smiled as soothingly as he could and hugged the blond close. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. You, Charles, are quite good-looking and you didn’t fail miserably.” He kissed his hair, nose pushed into a bobby pin. Chuck buried his face into Mike’s neck.

“Mikeyyyy,” he said, scrunching against the shorter man.

He ran his hands up and down the expanse of Chuck’s back in a soothing pattern. “I love your freckles, Chuck, and the fact that you have pale skin and that you’re super skinny and a huge dork,” he said, poking the blond’s side which made him jerk away and laugh.

“Look at me, babe.”

Chuck looked up, uncertain, shy.

“You’re great, dude, seriously.” Mike held Chuck’s face in his hands and shook him a little. Chuck gave him a begrudging smile.

“Don’t call me, Charles, Michael,” he said in response, poking one of Mike’s pecs, which made the brunet laugh.

“We’ll do this your way, okay? As fast or as slow as you want,” Mike said, moving his hands back to Chuck’s hips, though he was very tempted to run his fingers over the long span of pale, freckled stomach.

“You sure…?”

“One hundred percent. I like where this is going, just, do what you do. I’m cool.” 

Chuck relaxed after that, diving back into what had become some pretty heavy petting and everything was going well enough until they tried to take their pants off. It took almost fifteen minutes for them to successfully shed their clothes.

Mike had managed to get the seat to recline as far back as it would go, which was nearly flat against the back seat. Chuck was looking at Mike pretty calmly. His breathing was a little shallow and he was having a hard time meeting Mike’s eyes, but other than that, he was doing okay. He bit his lip, trying not to be too excited, which wasn’t really working because his hips kept twitching just so. He took a breath.

“I can’t believe my first sexual experience…is going to be in the front seat of my best friend-boyfriend’s car,” he said, looking up at Mutt’s roof. The view Mike was getting was enough to make him whimper a little.

“Sorry,” he sighed, running his hands down Chuck’s back and resting on his ass (or at least what little ass he did have). Chuck looked at him, eyes half lidded, mouth open a bit.

“Don’t be,” was the reply, and the look he had on his face made Mike moan.

They were a flurry of legs and arms in the small front seat of Mutt. Lots of shifting around, ‘I’m sorry’s and ‘it’s fine bro, don’t stop’s. They weren’t going at it for very long and it wasn’t exactly what Mike had hoped for, but being able to watch Chuck’s face, well, that in and of itself was worth the mess.

“If you apologize again, Chuck, I’ll toss you out of Mutt stark-ass naked and make you walk home,” Mike said as they nuzzled and sort of cuddled in the front seat.

Chuck just laughed a little and snuggled closer. “Okay, I won’t,” he said.

And Mutt was just the beginning.

Mike was not often surprised by things. He was good at going with the flow but seeing Chuck really into this new aspect of their relationship, well, he was very (pleasantly) surprised. 

The lead Burner didn’t actively seek out sex with the programmer and vice-versa. Sometimes it happened and sometimes it didn’t. They were teenagers, it came with the territory. Soon enough, the big hurdle Mike had been anticipating had passed, the world hadn’t ended and a new hurdle took its place.

The ‘L’-word.

Mike would stay up some nights, watching Chuck sleep, which was rare because the blond would go to sleep WAY later than him, working on codes. When he did have the chance to watch Chuck sleep, he often debated waking him up and just telling him. He’d gotten pretty close, when they were wrapped around each other post-coitus and vulnerable. But he never did. He was sure it was out of fear; that he would tell Chuck and he would freak out.

He planned everything out, how he would say it and make it awesome and meaningful and then it happened in a way he hadn’t planned: during a LARP weekend.

Lord Vanquisher and the Smiling Dragon had been separated during a battle and the knight was getting pretty panicked about it. He couldn’t find his King’s green cloak or any sign of his shocking blond hair. He battled his way through a line of soldiers and a troll, but Lord Vanquisher was nowhere in sight.

“Darkslayer! Where is the King?!” he called when he saw Ruby jump over a corpse. She looked panicked for a moment, opening her mouth to say something before they heard a rather impressive battle-cry and her eyes widened in fear. Mike didn’t have a chance to turn, knowing that someone’s weapon was going to clamp down on him, but it never did.

Mad Dog stood in front of a partially pivoted Smiling Dragon, choking, the tip of a lance poking out from his chest. He collapsed at the Knight’s feet, revealing a panting and bruised, but very much alive Lord Vanquisher. His knight stared, flooded with relief.

“My liege,” he breathed.

The King smiled. “It is done! Mad Dog has been slain!” he yelled and the fighting around them ceased. The opposing army surrendered and the dead were collected for proper burial.

“My Lord Chuck, you saved me today, I…” the knight started, having caught the King in his throne room later. He held up a hand, shaking his head, a small smile on his lips.

“Please, there is no need for that,” he said. The Smiling Dragon strode closer, leaning over to kiss Lord Vanquisher gently on the lips.

“I love you,” he whispered, so softly only the two of them could hear. Chuck’s face turned bright red and Mike could feel his own face warming. He smiled and rested a hand on a freckled cheek.

“Mikey…” Chuck breathed, very much out of character. Mike just shrugged, eyes soft.

Chuck reached out a hand, pulling Mike close and kissed him deeply. Mike let out a surprised gasp and chuckled as he was kissed. He heard the few people in the room, whispering to each other about giving Lord Vanquisher and his beloved some alone time. They closed the door behind them.

“Are you being serious or in character?” Chuck asked, holding Mike at arm’s length, lips a little swollen.

“Both?” Mike replied, smiling. Chuck’s shoulders relaxed a bit. He grabbed Mike’s hips carefully as Mike wiggled into his lap.

“I love you too, Mikey,” he said, closing his eyes as Mike ran his hands through his hair.

They rested their foreheads together, silent.

“Thank you,” Chuck said finally, wrapping his arms around Mike’s lower back and pulling him in for a hug.

“For what?” Mike asked, kissing Chuck’s neck and cheek and settling his chin on a bony shoulder.

“Everything. Being an awesome best friend, being an incredible boyfriend…just…putting up with me.”

Mike laughed a little and straightened up a bit. He held Chuck’s hair out of his face to look at his blue eyes. “Chuckles, please. You’re the best goddamn thing to happen to me since I left Deluxe. If anything, I should be thanking you.”

The blond blushed some more, smiled, and kissed Mike again.

“I guess we’re even.”

A few weeks later, Chuck was typing away at a security code, when a notification that he’d just gotten a new e-mail popped up on his screen. It was from Mike. He clicked it, curious.

Hey,

Was reading this last nite. Some food for thoughtJ

<3 Mikey

Lvandsdlovefest.doc

25k view download

Chuck opened the document, a feeling of trepidation washing over him as he read. He’d created a monster.

He quickly typed back.

No, Mikey. Just…no.

Not even five minutes after sending that message, he had a response.

This one?

Loveofaking.doc

30k view download

Chuck was pretty sure his boyfriend was trying to kill him via cheesy LARP porn.

Michael,

YOU HAVE A PROBLEM! I SUGGEST PROFESSIONAL HELP!

Charles

Mike’s face popped up on a new screen. He was laughing and Chuck was so tempted to just march to his room and throw a pillow as hard as he could at his handsome face.

“Why, Mikey? Why?” Chuck asked, trying to fight down a smile.

“You started it Chuck!”


End file.
